Madras High Court awards Rs 10 lakh compensation to kin of manual scavenger who died 24 years ago

Kannaiyan told the Court that he had filed an application with the Deputy Commissioner of Labor in 2002, two years after his son’s death, seeking compensation under the Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923.

The application remained pending for five years and was then dismissed by default in 2007 due to the plaintiff’s absence. However, it was reinstated in 2008 following a sub-application filed by Kannaiyan, but the authorities once again dismissed it on the same ground of non-appearance of the applicant.

In 2009, Kannaiyan filed a second sub-application to reinstate his compensation claim and urged the Deputy Commissioner of Labor to also condone the delay in filing the sub-application. The officer, however, refused to tolerate the delay, prompting Kannaiyan to move the High Court in 2010.